1. Technical Field
The present invention is in the technical field of cellular data communications. More particularly, the present invention is in the technical field of managing the switching of wireless communication devices from a cellular data communications of a lower speed to a cellular data communications of a faster speed upon entering into the area of the faster speed cellular data communications.
2. Related Art
The wireless cellular industry is continuously upgrading their cellular data networks to improve their speed and increase the amount of data that is transmitted. Currently, wireless cellular providers are updating their networks from third generation (3G) cellular data communications to fourth generation (4G) cellular data communications. 4G cellular data communications provides upload and download bandwidth that is multiple times faster than 3G. Accordingly, cellular data users want to have their networking hardware operate in 4G mode if 4G mode is available at their current physical location.
Typically, the networking hardware of the cellular data user, such as, but not limited to, a 3G/4G capable modem found in a laptop, wireless router, or other wireless communication device, is used in a stationary manner, such as in an office, conference room, or the home of the user. If the networking hardware is within range of 4G cellular coverage upon activation, the networking hardware will utilize the 4G cellular communications. If there is no 4G cellular coverage at the location, and networking hardware is within the range of a 3G cellular network, the networking hardware will connect to the 3G cellular network. Such operation is fine when the networking hardware remains stationary or the user shuts down the networking hardware before moving from a 3G cellular network service area to a 4G cellular network service area and restarts a cellular data communication sessions as part of the move. Otherwise, the user will receive an error message via the networking hardware that the cellular data connection has been lost, and the user will manually restart the cellular communications connection using the vendor's cellular modem management software application associated with the networking hardware. The networking hardware cellular modem upon initial connection startup will connect to 4G service if it is available, then 3G service if 4G is not available, and then 2G service if 4G and 3G are not available.
However, there is a non-stationary use case of a 3G/4G cellular modem in a networking hardware—where the networking hardware is found within a vehicle in motion and therefore dynamically traveling in and out of 3G and 4G mode cellular coverage areas. For example, first responders (e.g., police, fire fighters, EMS, etc.), utility workers (e.g. gas, electrical, communications, water, etc.) and other industries that require workers or employees to work from a vehicle need to have a reliable and efficient communications connection back to their respective headquarters/dispatchers/information service providers. In such instances, the vehicle driver is not able to safely monitor and maintain the cellular data connection due to the vehicle driver having to drive the vehicle in addition to performing business-defined duties. Therefore, the networking hardware needs to autonomously manage the switching of cellular data communications between 3G and 4G mode as the vehicle travels about in and out of 3G and 4G cellular coverage areas in order to maintain the needed data connection.
Dual mode 3G/4G cellular modems partially address this problem. If a vehicle's networking hardware with a dual mode 3G/4G cellular modem is initially activated within a wireless access point offering 4G mode, the networking hardware will continue to operate in 4G mode until the vehicle travels outside of the 4G coverage area. Once out of the 4G coverage area, the networking hardware will lose or drop the 4G cellular data connection. If the networking hardware can no longer communicate with 4G cellular data towers, and the connection drops, the networking hardware will then automatically connect to 3G cellular coverage. This inherent assumption only is fulfilled if the 3G cellular coverage is available.
However, dual mode 3G/4G cellular modems cannot instantly detect when a vehicle has traveled from a 3G cellular coverage area back into a 4G cellular coverage area. 3G networks and 4G networks operate at different frequencies (i.e., 840/1900 MHz for 3G and 700 MHz for 4G). Since dual mode 3G/4G cellular modems can only operate at one frequency at a time, thereby only being connected to one cellular network at a time, the dual mode 3G/4G cellular modem is unable to monitor and connect to both the 3G and 4G networks simultaneously. Once networking hardware is actively communicating on a 3G cellular network, it is actively transmitting data and therefore cannot scan for other frequencies such as 4G networks. When the networking hardware enters into a “quiet time”, a period of not transmitting data, the networking hardware can scan for other networks. However, if actively communicating in a 3G network, the networking hardware will continue to operate in 3G mode regardless of whether a vehicle drives back into a 4G cellular coverage area. Quiet periods are few and far between for networking hardware that is employed for public safety purposes, wherein the wireless device is constantly sending and receiving critical information, such as GPS position and computer aided dispatch data, as well as other data types. In addition, these wireless devices communicate “heartbeat” and socket “keep alive” messages. So a 3G/4G networking hardware operating in 3G mode has limited ability to determine that 4G cellular coverage might be available where the vehicle is now located—either stopped or in motion as the vehicle continues to travel. As such, the networking hardware often remains connected to the cellular data communications in slower 3G mode even if the vehicle and the networking hardware have traveled into a reliable 4G cellular coverage area.
As a result, a system and method is needed to determine when a vehicle—and therefore the vehicle networking hardware installed or contained in the vehicle—has traveled into a reliable 4G cellular coverage area while still connected to a 3G cellular network. If the networking hardware has traveled into a 4G coverage area, the networking hardware must somehow determine it is now located in a reliable 4G cellular data coverage area. Once the networking hardware determines that it is in a known reliable 4G cellular coverage area, the networking hardware can then disconnect from the 3G cellular coverage and connect to the 4G cellular coverage, regardless of whether the modem itself knows the vehicle has traveled into a reliable 4G service area. Further, the networking hardware needs to manage this 3G to 4G switching process automatically as a vehicle drives in and out of 3G and 4G cellular coverage areas.
In addition, there is a need for a system and method to determine the availability and reliability of 4G cellular coverage at any given location. A system and method is needed to continuously collect information about the actual current reliable 3G and 4G cellular coverage areas, and make that information available on a shared basis to other networking hardware in other vehicles so that any related networking hardware has the maximum ability to operate in the much higher bandwidth that 4G cellular data communications provides.